Aswin K Ramesh

Fuel efficient exhaust thermal management for compression ignition engines during idle via cylinder deactivation and flexible valve actuation

Fuel efficient thermal management of diesel engine aftertreatment is a significant challenge, particularly during cold start, extended idle, urban driving, and vehicle operation in cold ambient conditions. Aftertreatment systems incorporating NOx-mitigating selective catalytic reduction and diesel oxidation catalysts must reach ∼250 °C to be effective. The primary engine-out condition that affects the ability to keep the aftertreatment components hot is the turbine outlet temperature; however, it is a combination of exhaust flow rate and turbine outlet temperature that impact the warm-up of the aftertreatment components via convective heat transfer. This article demonstrates that cylinder deactivation improves exhaust thermal management during both loaded and lightly loaded idle conditions. Coupling cylinder deactivation with flexible valve motions results in additional benefits during lightly loaded idle operation. Specifically, this article illustrates that at loaded idle, valve motion and fuel injection deactivation in three of the six cylinders enables the following: (1) a turbine outlet temperature increases from ∼190 °C to 310 °C with only a 2% fuel economy penalty compared to the most efficient six-cylinder operation and (2) a 39% reduction in fuel consumption compared to six-cylinder operation achieving the same ∼310 °C turbine out temperature. Similarly, at lightly loaded idle, the combination of valve motion and fuel injection deactivation in three of the six cylinders, intake/exhaust valve throttling, and intake valve closure modulation enables the following: (1) a turbine outlet temperature increases from ∼120 °C to 200 °C with no fuel consumption penalty compared to the most efficient six-cylinder operation and (2) turbine outlet temperatures in excess of 250 °C when internal exhaust gas recirculation is also implemented. These variable valve actuation-based strategies also outperform six-cylinder operation for aftertreatment warm-up at all catalyst bed temperatures. These benefits are primarily realized by reducing the air flow through the engine, directly resulting in higher exhaust temperatures and lower pumping penalties compared to conventional six-cylinder operation. The elevated exhaust temperatures offset exhaust flow reductions, increasing exhaust gas-to-catalyst heat transfer rates, resulting in superior aftertreatment thermal management performance.

Utilizing low airflow strategies, including cylinder deactivation, to improve fuel efficiency and aftertreatment thermal management

Approximately 30% of the fuel consumed during typical heavy-duty vehicle operation occurs at elevated speeds with low-to-moderate loads below 6.5 bar brake mean effective pressure. The fuel economy and aftertreatment thermal management of the engine at these conditions can be improved using conventional means as well as cylinder deactivation and intake valve closure modulation. Airflow reductions result in higher exhaust gas temperatures, which are beneficial for aftertreatment thermal management, and reduced pumping work, which improves fuel efficiency. Airflow reductions can be achieved through a reduction of displaced cylinder volume by using cylinder deactivation and through reduction of volumetric efficiency by using intake valve closure modulation. This paper shows that, depending on load, cylinder deactivation and intake valve closure modulation can be used to reduce the fuel consumption between 5% and 25%, increase the rate of warm-up of aftertreatment, maintain higher temperatures, or achieve active diesel particulate filter regeneration without requiring dosing of the diesel oxidation catalyst.

Impact of Cylinder Deactivation on Active Diesel Particulate Filter Regeneration at Highway Cruise Conditions

Abstract—Heavy-duty over-the-road trucks require periodic active diesel particulate filter regeneration to clean the filter of stored particulate matter. These events require sustained temperatures between 500 and 600□C to complete the regeneration process. Engine operation during typical 65 mile/hour highway cruise conditions (1200 rpm/7.6 bar) results in temperatures of approximately 350□C, and can reach approximately 420□C with late fuel injection. This necessitates hydrocarbon fueling of a diesel oxidation catalyst or burner located upstream of the diesel particulate filter to reach the required regeneration temperatures. These strategies require increased fuel consumption, and the presence of a fuel-dosed oxidation catalyst (or burner) between the engine and particulate filter. This paper experimentally demonstrates that, at the highway cruise condition, deactivation of valve motions and fuel injection for two or three (of six) cylinders can instead be used to reach engine outlet temperatures of 520-570□C, a 170-220□C increase compared to normal operation. This is primarily a result of a reduction in the air-to-fuel ratio realized by reducing the displaced cylinder volume through cylinder deactivation.

Cylinder deactivation during dynamic diesel engine operation

Cylinder deactivation can be implemented at low loads in diesel engines to improve efficiency and aftertreatment thermal management through reductions in pumping work and airflow, respectively. The rate of increase of torque/power during diesel engine transients is limited by the engine’s ability to increase the airflow quickly enough to allow sufficient fuel addition to meet the desired torque/power. The reduced airflow during cylinder deactivation needs to be managed properly so as to not slow the torque/power response. This paper demonstrates that it is possible to operate a diesel engine at low loads in cylinder deactivation without compromising its transient torque/power capabilities, a key finding in enabling the practical implementation of cylinder deactivation in diesel engines.

Oil Accumulation and First Fire Readiness Analysis of Cylinder Deactivation

Cylinder deactivation (CDA) is a technology that can improve the fuel economy and exhaust thermal management of compression ignition engines (diesel and natural gas), especially at low loads and engine idling conditions. The reduction in engine displacement during CDA improves fuel efficiency at low loads primarily through a reduction in pumping work. During deactivation of a given cylinder the drop in pres- sure inside the cylinder could possibly lead to the transport of oil from the crankcase into the cylinder owing to the reduced pressure difference between the crankcase and the cylinder. In addition, cylinder deactivation might inhibit the first fire readiness of a reactivating cylinder as a result of reduced wall, head, and piston temperatures. Both of these potential issues are quantitatively studied in this paper. This paper describes a strategy to estimate in-cylinder oil accumulation during CDA, and first fire readiness following CDA, through comparison of individual heat realease profiles before and after CDA. Cylinder cool-down and oil accumulation dur- ing deactivation could possibly result in misfire or degraded combustion upon an at- tempt to reactivate a given cylinder. Fortunately, experiments described in this paper demonstrate no cases of misfire at any speed/load conditions for the CDA durations tested, specifically, 100 ft-lb load at 800 rpm and 1200 rpm with deactivation intervals of 0.5, 5, 10 and 20 minutes. Although pilot heat release in the reactivated cylinders was delayed by approximately 1 CAD after 5 minutes of CDA, the main heat release was very similar to the heat release of a continuously activated cylinder. As such, results show no first fire readiness issues at the conditions tested. The duration of time the engine could be operated in CDA mode without significant oil accumulation, and other methods to minimize oil accumulation during CDA have also been proposed.

Diesel engine aftertreatment warm-up through early exhaust valve opening and internal exhaust gas recirculation during idle operation:

A large fraction of diesel engine tailpipe NOx emissions are emitted before the aftertreatment components reach effective operating temperatures. As a result, it is essential to develop technologies to accelerate initial aftertreatment system warm-up. This study investigates the use of early exhaust valve opening (EEVO) and its combination with negative valve overlap to achieve internal exhaust gas recirculation (iEGR), for aftertreatment thermal management, both at steady state loaded idle operation and over a heavy-duty federal test procedure (HD-FTP) drive cycle. The results demonstrate that implementing EEVO with iEGR during steady state loaded idle conditions enables engine outlet temperatures above 400 °C, and when implemented over the HD-FTP, is expected to result in a 7.9% reduction in tailpipe-out NOx.

Cylinder Deactivation for Increased Engine Efficiency and Aftertreatment Thermal Management in Diesel Engines

Diesel engine cylinder deactivation (CDA) can be used to reduce petroleum consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of the global freight transportation system. Heavy duty trucks require complex exhaust aftertreatment (A/T) in order to meet stringent emission regulations. Efficient reduction of engine-out emissions require a certain A/T system temperature range, which is achieved by thermal management via control of engine exhaust flow and temperature. Fuel efficient thermal management is a significant challenge, particularly during cold start, extended idle, urban driving, and vehicle operation in cold ambient conditions. CDA results in airflow reductions at low loads. Airflow reductions generally result in higher exhaust gas temperatures and lower exhaust flow rates, which are beneficial for maintaining already elevated component temperatures. Airflow reductions also reduce pumping work, which improves fuel efficiency. The fuel economy and thermal management benefits of one-third engine CDA, half-engine CDA and two-third engine CDA have been studied at key operating conditions. CDA improves the fuel efficiency at steady state loaded idle operation by 40% with similar engine out temperatures and lower exhaust flow rates compared to conventional thermal management strategies as demonstrated with an inline six (I6) cylinder medium duty diesel engine used in this study. The lower exhaust f low rates due to CDA help maintain elevated A/T temperatures via reduced heat transfer losses. At elevated engine speeds, CDA provides a 5% 32% BTE improvement in fuel economy, increased rate of A/T warm-up, higher temperatures steady state temperatures, and allow for active diesel particulate filter regeneration without hydrocarbon dosing of the diesel oxidation catalyst. During highway cruise, half-engine CDA and two-third engine CDA can be used to reach engine outlet temperatures of 520 to 570° C, a 170 to 220° C increase compared to normal operation. Full engine CDA enables 78% reduction in motoring torque at an engine speed of 2100 rpm and thus could help save fuel and keep the A/T warm during vehicle coast.

Reverse breathing in diesel engines for aftertreatment thermal management

Approximately 40% of typical heavy-duty vehicle operation occurs at loaded idle during which time conventional diesel engines are unable to maintain aftertreatment component temperatures in a fuel-efficient manner. Fuel economy and thermal management at this condition can be improved via reverse breathing, a novel method in which exhaust gases are recirculated, as needed, from exhaust to intake manifold via one or more cylinders. Resultant airflow reductions increase exhaust gas temperatures and decrease exhaust flow rates, both of which are beneficial for maintaining desirable aftertreatment component temperatures while consuming less fuel via reduced pumping work. Several strategies for implementation of reverse breathing are described in detail and are compared to cylinder deactivation and internal exhaust gas recirculation operation. Experimental data demonstrate 26% fuel consumption savings compared to conventional stay-warm operation, 60 °C improvement in turbine outlet temperature and 28% reduction in exhaust flow compared to conventional best fuel consumption operation at the loaded idle condition (800 r/min, 1.3 bar brake mean effective pressure). The incorporation of reverse breathing to more efficiently maintain desired aftertreatment temperatures during idle conditions is experimentally demonstrated to result in fuel savings of 2% over the heavy-duty federal test procedure drive cycle compared with conventional operation.